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Usenet Posted 21 years ago
Usage

Awhile/a while

Which is correct?
- I did that awhile ago.
- I did that a while ago.
  

Top answer

[nq:1]Which is correct? - I did that awhile ago. [/nq] The second.

— Usenet

  • [nq:1]Which is correct?
  • - I did that awhile ago.
  • [/nq] The second.
  • "Awhile" is used only in things like "Stop and reast awhile".
  • Strange, I agree; and I don't think I use it at all.
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5 Answers
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[nq:1]Which is correct? - I did that awhile ago. - I did that a while ago.[/nq]
The second. "Awhile" is used only in things like "Stop and reast awhile". Strange, I agree; and I don't think I use it at all.

Mike.
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[nq:1]Which is correct? - I did that awhile ago. - I did that a while ago.[/nq]
I think the first is incorrect and the second is correct. "Awhile" is an adverb, so you could say "wait awhile", or "rest awhile", but not "awhile ago".
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[nq:1]Which is correct? - I did that awhile ago. - I did that a while ago.[/nq]
The second.
Some maybe all English-usage gurus say to not use "awhile" unless it would be possible to replace it with "for a while" with no change in meaning.
You wouldn't say "I did that for a while ago", so "awhile" isn't right in that case.
But "I did that awhile" is okay, because "I did that for a w
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The word "awhile" is valid anywhere that it can be replaced by "along time", and still make sense.

Harold
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[nq:1]The word "awhile" is valid anywhere that it can be replaced by "along time", and still make sense.[/nq]
If that's intended to be a question, the answer is "No." In particular, the word "along" is a preposition and has nothing to do with the phrase "a long," in which "long" is an adjective.
In addition, "a while" does not necessarily mean "a long time." Consider the common expression,
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